(1) Field of Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus for the art of fish filleting. More particularly the invention is concerned with apparatus for the filleting of an uncooked fish by holding the fish securely while assisting the person performing the carving to make an accurate and clean cut.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
The filleting of a fish is a difficult and important operation. The bones of a fish, frequently small and white or translucent, are difficult to see. Also, there are usually a good many of these tiny bones. Separating the fish flesh from the fish bones not only makes eating fish more pleasant but also safer. As more people have come to recognize the value of fish as a nutritious food source, the eating of fish has increased in popularity. However, many people still avoid eating fish or serving fish because they are concerned about children swallowing fish bones or because they do not want to deal with the fish bones themselves.
Filleting a fish properly requires a very sharp knife and a firmly held fish. Working one side of the fish at a time, initial incisions are usually made along the side of the backbone and behind the gills of the fish. Then the flesh is lifted from the larger bones using the knife to separate the flesh from the rib cage of the fish. Without a sharp knife and a firmly held fish, the fish can easily become mangled or the process performed inefficiently. To be sharp, the knife must be resharpened frequently. Holding a fish with one hand and carving with the other hand obviously can be unsatisfactory and inefficient. Not only is a freshly caught fish difficult to hold with one hand but also the filleting or carving process can be enhanced if a hand is available to lift the fillet as the fish is filleted. Also the use of some clamping means enables the person doing the filleting to better see the relationship between the bones and the knife.
There are a number of filleting apparatuses that have been patented which feature various means for holding the fish to be filleted. However, none have the efficiency and ease of operation of the present invention nor do they have knife sharpeners or measuring devices as an integral part of the apparatus holding the fish.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,523,736, issued to Swetlik in 1950, features a row of pointed prongs on a clamp. His clamp has no supporting board under the fish to provide a cutting surface and has no locking means to lock the clamp onto the tail of the fish to be filleted. U.S. Pat. No. 3,016,565 discloses Hill's fish handling and scaling jig which holds a fish by the tail using the teeth of a latching arm that locks into a vertical latch stand. Wilburn's fish cleaning device, U.S. Pat. No. 3,248,751, holds the fish to be filleted by means of a toothed clamp held under the pressure of a pivoting rod. Buddecke's catfish killer and holder, U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,919, features a single spike to kill the catfish by impaling the head of the catfish held in a box-like structure at one end of a board.
None of the above cited references holds the fish to be filleted as firmly and as simply as the instant invention. Some prior art devices are not positive in operation and others are awkward to open and close. None has a knife sharpener conveniently located thereon for frequent sharpening of a filleting knife. None has a measuring device conveniently placed to permit an accurate measurement of the length of the fish and accurate segmentation of the fillet carved therefrom.
The present invention is simple to manufacture and easy to use. It is positive in its operation. The hobby fisherman or woman, and the professional, can fillet his or her catch efficiently, quickly and accurately with this Fish Filleting Kit. Prior art known to this inventor includes the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
2,523,736, 9/1950, Swetlik, PA1 2,979,763, 4/1961, Stabryla, PA1 3,016,565, 1/1962, Hill, PA1 3,178,766, 4/1965, Bednar, PA1 3,248,751, 5/1966, Wilborn, PA1 4,127,919, 12/1987, Buddecke.